Magnetic bingo marker remover



Jan' 3l, 1961 c. M. HEATH, JR., ETAL 2,970,003

A MAGNETIC BINGO MARKER REMOVER Filed July 50, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS I I` /G. Z CHA/ass M/fAr/Ja A fm2/ve Y Jan 31, 196 c. M. HEATH, JR., ETAL 2,970,003

MAGNETIC BINGO MARKER REMOVER Filed July 30, 1959 2 Sheets-Shea?l 2 IN V EN TORS C//AeL Es M. Ham, Je.

BY 0c/ue; M. 2550 rates MAGNETIC nlNGo MARKER REMovER Charles M.' Heath, Jr., and Lucille M." Reed, both of 5215 W. Adams St., Chicago, lll.

Filed July 30, 1959, Ser. No. 830,554`

1 Claim. (Cl. 294-655,)

This invention relates to a magnetic Bingo marker removerY and' has for an object to provide a magnetic device for simultaneously remo-ving anumber of magnetic markers from a* gameboard such as Bingo many times faster than such markers could be removed by hand.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for removing game pieces such as Bingo markers from a gameboard such asa Bingoboard, by magnetic means, and thenrwhen the markers have been removed, making it possible to readily deposit all the removed markers simultaneously inany desired area'.

A further object of this invention. is to make markers so as to include magnetic materialsothat the markers may be readily removed by the magnetic device of this invention and then. deposited. in anyv desired area'.

Still a further object of. thisinvention is to providey a magnetic remover forV magnetic game pieces or markers, which magnetic remover may be placed over the gameboard with the game pieces thereon so as to attract the magnetic game pieces through the magnetic remover and hold them thereto while the remover is being moved to a desired location, and then, to release all the markers from the magnetic remover by a simple operation through means extending into the handle of the remover.

In brief, the magnetic gameboard marker remover of this invention consists of a box of non-magnetic material provided with a bent grip handle, and having a number of magnets mounted on a plate movable in the box to and from a position adjacent the bottom of the box, the handle containing a means for moving the magnets to either positio-n so that the device may be placed over magnetic material markers on a gameboard and the operating means manipulated to pick up the markers and hold them to the remover and then, when the remover has been placed in another desired area, to release all the markers into the area.

With the above and related objects in view, this invention consists in the details of construction and combination of parts, as will be more fully understood from the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the device, partly in section, showing the magnetic gameboard markers held thereby.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view, partly in section, of this invention, on line 2-2 of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a sectional View on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a sectional View on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a plan View of a marker having magnetic material forming a part thereof.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

There is shown at 10 the magnetic Bingo marker remover of this invention particularly intended for picking up magnetic Bingo markers from a Bingo gameboard, or other markers from other gameboards, so as to quickly remove them and enable the markers to be deposited in a desired area readily.

A` marker suitable cooperating with this invention is shown in Figs. 5 and 6 at 12, as consisting of a disc 14 of any suitable material to which is permanently attached a disc 16 of magnetic material. The material of the disc 16 is either steel or iron, or any other suitable material which is capable of being attracted by a magnet. However, the magnetic material 16 is not, in itself', a magnet.

The magnetic gameboard marker remover 10 of this invention comprises a box 181made ofV non-magnetic and preferably plastic material in its top wall 20 and its. integrally depending side walls 22.

A removable bottom wall 24 made of non-magnetic material such as a sheet of aluminum, is removably mountedin the box lfby means-of'grooves 26suitably located in the two-oppositely disposed side walls 22. To'

enable the aluminum plate' 24 to` be inserted into or removed from the grooves 26, one of the 'sidewalls between the twoside': wallsv in which the grooves 26 are A hole 32 is located substantially centrally ofthe boxA top wall 2lb, and secured to the-top wall 20V over the hole 32 in any suitable manner is an upstanding handle 34' which terminates in a bent-over, curved handle grip 36 which, as shown, may-be shaped somewhat like the grip on-a pistol.

The handle 34 is provided with a.: shaftway portion 358. which; communicates; with vthe top; walll hole; 32; and also.

communicates with another shaftway portion 4i) extending into the bent handle grip 36. In addition, as shown, the shaftway portion 40 communicates with an aperture 42 at the top of the handle grip and an opening 44 at the bottom of the handle grip.

A shaft 46 is extendible and retractable through the shaftway portion 38 and the top wall hole 32, and at its bottom end, within the box 18, there is affixed a plate 48 made of non-magnetic material such as aluminum, and depending from the bottom surface of the plate 48 are a plurality of individual magnets 50 secured thereto by any suitable means such as aluminum straps 52 extending through suitable grooves between the north and south poles of the magnet, and suitably secured to the bottom of aluminum plate 48.

The upper end of the shaft 46 is pivotally connected as at S4 to one end of a link 56 which is pivoted intermediate its ends as at 58 through the sides of the handle 34, the other end of the link 56 being pivotally connected as at 60 to the bottom end of a finger button 62, whose top end 64 may extend through the opening 42 in the bent portion of the handle grip 36 as shown in Fig. 1.

Obviously, any desired number of magnets 5@ may be provided such as nine, twelve, sixteen, as shown, it being necessary to include a sufficient number of magnets 5G to cover the game surface of the gameboard 68 from which the markers 12 are to be removed.

In operation, gravity will normally hold the plate 43 with its attached magnets 50 in the bottom position resting on the box bottom wall 24 as shown in Fig. 1, and this, in turn, will hold the finger button in the position 65 shown in Fig. 1. The remover 10 is merely placed over the markers 12 on the board 68 as shown in Fig. l, and in this position, the markers will be attracted by the magnets 50 and held against the bottom of the aluminum plate 24. Then, holding the remover 10 by means of the bent handle grip portion 36, it will be lifted ol the gameboard or Bingo board 68 carrying with it all the markers held against the box bottom wall 24 and brought over to a desired area such as an open container for the markers 12. Then, the Ithumb will be pressed against the top end of the thumb button 62 moving it from the position 65 shown in Fig. l, to the position 64 in Fig. 3, and depressing this nger button 62 will cause the link 56 to raise up the shaft 46 and thus raise the plate 48 with its attached magnets 50 to the position shown in Figs. 3 and 4, away from the bottom wall 24 of the box i3, thus moving the magnets 50 far enough away from the magnetic markers 12 so that they will no longer magnetically attract the markers 12 and hold them against the bottom, whereupon the markers 12 will immediately drop away into the deposit area or container over which the remover is then held.

Thus, in a game of Bingo, which is often played with many participants, either the player or an attendant, with the aid of the Bingo marker remover of this invention, can quickly clear all the Bingo gameboards (of an individual player or of a number of players) at the end of a game, thus enabling the next game to be commenced more quickly.

Although this invention has been described in considerable detail, such description is intended as being illustra-tive rather than limiting, since the invention may be variously embodied, and the scope of the invention is to be determined as claimed.

Having thus set forth and disclosed the nature of this invention, what is claimed is:

A magnetic device of the character described for simultaneously removing a number of magnetic markers from a gameboard such as Bingo, said device comprising a rectangular box of non-magnetic material having an imperforate non-magnetic box bottom wall, the top wall of said box having a hole substantially centrally thereof, an upstanding handle secured to said box top wall and having a shaftway communicating with said box top wall hole, a shaft extendible through said shaftway and said box top wall hole, means inV said handle for retracting said shaft, said upstanding handle terminating in a bent handle grip, said shaftway continuing into said bent handle grip, said shaft retracting means comprising a link pivotally mounted in said bent handle grip within said shaftway,

' one end of said link being pivotally connected to the upper end of said shaft, and manually operable means pivotally connectedV to the other end of said link and extendible exteriorly of said grip, said box having said top wall and lits depending side walls formed of integrally molded plastic material, said box bottom wall being an aluminum plate removably supported in two oppositely disposed side walls, a non-magnetic plate secured on the bottom end of said shaft within said box, and a plurality `of magnets depending from said non-magnetic plate Within said box, whereby said plurality of magnets may be extended tov the bottom wall of said box to hold magnetic markers against said box bottom wall, or may be retracted from said box bottom wall to drop the magnetic markers held thereby.

References Cited in the le of this patent 

